Dress for Success
by Kameka
Summary: Set extremely early in the first season – Zoe needs to beef up her wardrobe with clothing suitable for her new role as an insurance investigator – and in the process spends some time talking to Taylor.


Title: Dress for Success

By: Kameka

Rating: G

Disclaimer: Characters from the show Wild Card do not belong to me; any original characters do.  No money has been made; please don't sue me.

Notes: This is a response to a challenge that I got on the Wild Card Fan Fiction list.  The full requirements of the challenge can be found at the end of the fic.  Many thanks to Tiger, who read over it to make sure there weren't any glaringly obvious mistakes.

Summary: Set extremely early in the first season – Zoe needs to beef up her wardrobe with clothing suitable for her new role as an insurance investigator – and in the process spends some time talking to Taylor.

* * * * *

"I can't believe it's happening to me!"  Zoe Busiek flipped through the jackets that were hung neatly on the metal rack. Above the circular rack was a bright-yellow-and-red cardboard sign designed to catch the eye that proclaimed the rack it rested upon to be full of clothing that was on sale.

"What, that you got a job?  Weren't you looking for one?"

Zoe looked over at her eldest niece Taylor, "I know I was looking for a job; what I meant was that I couldn't believe I got _this_ job.  Me, Zoe Busiek, working in an _office_."  She said the last word almost as if it were bad and shuddered slightly.  "Working in a responsible, adult environment.  _Being_ a responsible adult.  Candy will never believe it."

Taylor laughed, wondering just what type of wild ride she and her younger siblings were in for now that their guardian was Aunt Zoe.  Her mother had always told them carefully edited stories about Zoe's exploits and now that she was living there… It was bound to be interesting.  "You've never worked in a 'responsible, adult environment' before?"

"Not any like this – everyone in that office was wearing a suit!  A suit!  Me in a suit."  She shook her head of sandy blonde curls mournfully.  "What is this world coming to?"

Taylor laughed and held out a chunky black suit for her aunt's inspection.  "How about this?"

Zoe made a face at it and gave her head one quick, decisive negative shake.  "Nuh-uh, no way.  They can put me in business casual clothing, but there is no way you can take my spirit away from me!"

"Your…spirit," the teen repeated doubtfully, wondering if her younger siblings had been right in not helping their aunt find affordable business clothing.  They had taken advantage of the trip to the mall but were at the nearby arcade, Cliff watching over the youngest of the bunch.  Taylor had decided to tag along with Zoe for a while before branching out on her own.  The fact that she was still attempting to atone for lying to the older woman was also a factor in her decision.

"All clothing is a reflection of the person wearing it, Taylor. That," she said as she gestured to the black fabric the teenager held, "just screams 'I'm scared to step out of line or be attractive!'"

"It does?"

"Sure it does!"  Zoe reached out and hooked the hanger back onto the rack and steered her niece to another one a short distance away.  "What do you think if you see a girl at school wearing an outfit that looks like a complete rip-off of something Britney Spears was wearing in a magazine a few days ago?"

"She wants to be Britney Spears."

"Right.  And if you saw a guy wearing a long-sleeved and high-necked black shirt and a pair of black jeans?"

"Is he crazy? Someone definitely needs to learn that the gothic look isn't all that good looking."

Zoe laughed at Taylor's joke, the teen joining in.  "No gothic makeup."

"That he wants to fade into the background."  Taylor was quiet for a minute before coming up with her own example.  "It's like when a girl is always wearing short skirts and slutty tops – you figure she wants to get noticed by guys."

"Exactly.  Business clothing works the same way.  All clothing is just an outer reflection of the person; the first thing you see and judge someone by.  That," she nodded in direction of the suit they had left behind, "is _so_ not a reflection of who I am that it's not even funny."

"Okay, okay."  Taylor pulled out a pair of bright red pants that were broken up with white embroidery and considered it silently.

"Now _that_ is something I'd wear," Zoe said with a grin as she moved closer to find them in the right size.  "I have enough tops that I can wear; I'm pretty sure I can even find enough jackets, I just need to dig around in the basement for the box of clothes that they were put in.  I don't think I'll get either of those unless I fall completely in love with something.  Pants or skirts I can use; I don't think wearing jeans every day would work and some of my skirts would probably be considered too short for the office."

With that, they narrowed their search and found a few items that weren't too expensive before they decided to venture into another store.  They were on their way to the arcade so they could tell Cliff and Hannah where they'd be when a body shoved its' way between them.

"Does getting old mean that you don't have to be polite?!" Taylor glared at the retreating figure.  The person in question was an extremely overweight woman in perhaps her mid-fifties wearing a canary yellow muumuu that clashed with her un-kept hair that was dyed blue, purple, and orange.  She turned around at Taylor's exclamation and glared back through eyes set in a ruddy face that had too much makeup on.

"Taylor!" Zoe pulled her niece's arm slightly.  "Be quiet! You should respect old ladies," she offered an apologetic smile to the old lady in question before lowering her voice and continued so that only Taylor could hear, "even if they're ugly and have strange colors in their hair."

Both Taylor and Zoe laughed and the woman's gaze turned suspicious.  Before either of them said something they regretted, they hurried into the arcade to find Cliff and Hannah.

"Aunt Zoe?"

"Yeah?"

"Would it be all right if I go check out some shops on my own?  I haven't been in Rave or Gadzooks for weeks; they usually have some fun sale items."

Zoe turned around from where she was looking at the video screen to regard her oldest niece.  "Meet us in the food court in two hours, okay?"

Taylor smiled, relieved, and nodded her assent.

"Aunt Zoe, can I go shopping with you now?"  Hannah, having died, turned around to look up at her aunt.

Zoe reached out and ruffled her hand through Hannah's hair.  "Definitely; I can't shop without the help of a fashion expert like you!"  She held out her hand for Hannah to slip hers into.  "Cliff, food court in two hours?"  When the almost teen-aged boy didn't respond, she prodded him gently in the side.

"Yeah, yeah, food court, two hours."

With a laugh, Zoe and Hannah left the arcade to venture into the rest of the mall.

*

End

*

Reviews are welcome!

The challenge was to use these four lines within a story:

1.  "I can't believe it's happening to me!"

2.  "You can't take my spirit away from me!"

3.  "Is he crazy?"  

4.  "You should respect old ladies even if they're ugly and have strange colors in their hair."

I was also supposed to try to make it romantic…. Didn't manage that one. Sorry!


End file.
